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Joint Tenancy Agreement

Joint tenancy is the ownership of property by two or more people. Right of survivorship comes with joint tenancy. This means that in the event one of the owners die, the property is automatically transferred to the living owner. This type of ownership is popular to those who wish to keep property from entering into probate upon ones death. Take a look at the questions below regarding joint tenancy that have been answered by Experts.

If parents are in joint tenancy, can they add their children (two married couples) in joint tenancy on the title? What is tax consequence to children when they take on mom and dad's share of ownership?

If the children are added now, there shouldn't be any tax issues. Also, there no consequences regarding gift taxes. A donor is entitled to give up to $13,000 per person each year as annual gift exclusion. Also, each person is allowed a lifetime exemption of up to $5,000,000. This means that a person can give up to that amount without being affected by a gift tax. However, the donor will have to file a gift tax return with the IRS letting them know the amount of the lifetime exemption that is being used. As long as the donor doesn't exceed the $5,000,000, they won't have to worry about a gift tax.

Distinguish between a joint tenancy and a tenancy in common with regards to shared property. What are the differences in the owners’ rights and obligations between the types of ownership?

Joint Tenancy: There is automatic survivorship on a piece of property that is co-owned. When one owner dies while the property is still in their possession, ownership is automatically transferred to the other co-owner.

Tenancy in Common: There is no right to survivorship on the piece of property that is co-owned. This means if one of the owners die, their share of the property is divided between his/her heirs according to the owners will. If the owner has no will, the property will be dispersed according to statutes of the state.

My mother had a joint tenancy deed with rights of survivorship with my sister Debra. It was done on 4/1/10. On 4/10/11 my mother did another joint tenancy deed with me and 4 other members of my family, but did not include Debra in the second deed. Does Debra have any rights to this land? I live in Oklahoma.

Debra will still own an undivided 1/2 interest in the property according to the deed of 4/1/10. When your mother made a second deed, she could only transfer the original 1/2 of the property that wasn't transferred to Debra. The 4/10/11 deed changed nothing with Debra's ownership of 1/2 of the property. As it stands, Debra owns half of the property and you, along with the other four family members have ownership of the other 1/2 of the property.

My dad and I have joint tenancy on a property, that my mom signed an exemption, if something were to happen to my dad what happens to the property? Is there any way my mom can quit claim the property without my knowledge? My mom signed an exemption that she was not on the title of the property nor would she be. (For tax purposes) my dad has Alzheimer's and is slowly losing his memory.

Your father is a joint tenant of the property and if he chose to, he could convey his share of the property to your mother before his death. If your father does convey his share, this would make your ownership a tenancy in common. This means you would no longer have right to survivorship with the new owner (your mother). There is always the possibility that your mother could sway your father to quit claim his property. If you feel that your father isn't mentally capable of making a decision such as this, and that your mother swayed him unfairly, you might be able to have the conveyance overturned.

Joint tenancy is a legal way for two or more people to share property together with the right to survivorship. Many people choose this type of ownership to ensure that their property will go to a co-owner and stay out of probate. If you are interested in joint tenancy, you may want to ask an Expert to assist you in making a choice that is right for your individual situation.

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